Iranian bombers came within striking distance of US air base before Qatari jets shot them down – report

Two Iranian bombers managed to penetrate Qatari airspace and came within minutes of striking the American Al Udeid Air Base when they were shot down by the Qatari Air Force, CNN reported Wednesday, citing two sources briefed on the operation.

The incident on Monday drew harsh condemnations from Qatar, which had long maintained cordial relations with the regime, which it now accused of “an escalatory approach” and of trying to drag it into war, vowing its actions would not go unanswered.

The Iranian jets, two Su-24 tactical bombers, reportedly flew at only 80 feet to evade radar detection. The Soviet-era planes entered active service in the early seventies.

One of the sources told CNN that the jets were only “two minutes” from their respective targets after ignoring radio warnings. One of the jets was reportedly targeting the large, but mostly evacuated, Al Udeid Air Base, while the other was en route to Ras Laffan, one of the most important natural gas processing facilities for the Qatari economy.

Due to “time constraints” and “based on the available evidence,” the second source said, Qatar’s Air Force classified the jets as hostile and scrambled an F-15 fighter that engaged in “aerial combat” before shooting them down.

The source added that visual identification and photographs had shown that the Iranian jets were “carrying bombs and guided munitions.”

The jets fell into the sea off the Qatari coast, and authorities launched searches for the crews, according to Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari.

Sukhoi Su-24 supersonic, all-weather attack aircraft variable-sweep wing, twin-engines and a side-by-side seating arrangement for its crew of two. It was first of USSR's aircraft to carry integrated digital navigation/attack system. remains in service with the Russian Air Force. pic.twitter.com/L61c0miMk2

— Chris Bolton (@CcibChris) August 5, 2021

The regime is estimated to operate around 29 of the tactical bombers as part of its aging fleet of aircraft that is being degraded by the day through Israeli and U.S. strikes.

This week, an Israeli F-35 stealth fighter scored the first air-to-air kill of a hostile manned aircraft when it shot down a Russian-made Yak-130 trainer and light fighter jet, one of the most modern planes in the Iranian air force.

US Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, mentioned the incident in a briefing on Wednesday, noting that “Qatari fighters for the first time have shot down two Iranian bombers on route to their location.”

The incident is the only known attempt to use the aging Iranian fighter planes to strike neighboring countries during this conflict. Most of the attacks on the Gulf countries have come via some 400 ballistic missiles and over a thousand unmanned drones.

In an unusually harshly worded readout of a phone call, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said he had told Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi that he saw “no genuine desire” by Iran to de-escalate the situation.

Qatar’s Ministry of Defense has published updated totals on the number of aircraft, drones, and missiles launched by Iran since Saturday, that have been successfully intercepted by the Qatar Armed Forces:

- 98/101 Ballistic Missiles
- 24/39 Drones
- 3/3 Cruise Missiles
- 2/2… pic.twitter.com/pp8R8lG5nB

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) March 3, 2026

“Rather, it seeks to inflict harm on its neighbors and drag them into a war that is not theirs,” Al Thani said.

Iranian attacks in the Gulf have killed thirteen people so far, including seven civilians and six U.S. soldiers.

According to the readout, “Araghchi said the missile strikes were directed at American interests and were not intended to target the Gulf state. Yet, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs ‘categorically rejected’ that assertion, citing the civilian and residential areas inside the country struck by the attacks.”

Al Thani noted that attacks hit the vicinity of Hamad International Airport, and “vital infrastructure and industrial zones, including facilities linked to liquefied natural gas production.”

“He added that the attacks were not limited to missiles, but were ongoing through drones, as well as aircraft that had entered Qatari airspace and were intercepted by the country's armed forces.”

Finally, he threatened that “such attacks could not go unanswered, citing the country's inherent right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter.”

Qatar has been the Iranian regime’s closest ally in the Gulf for the past decades, mediating between Iran and the West and maintaining economic relations.